


an autumn storm

by syari



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, First War with Voldemort, Marauders' Era, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-28
Updated: 2017-09-28
Packaged: 2019-01-06 10:15:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12209211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/syari/pseuds/syari
Summary: One night in autumn, Regulus Black went to his death... but he didn't have to.





	an autumn storm

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Day Before The End](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12023511) by [crescentlunae](https://archiveofourown.org/users/crescentlunae/pseuds/crescentlunae). 



> this was inspired by many things, but mostly by the work of a good friend and the firm belief that Regulus just needed a strong cup of tea and someone to listen.

"And no matter what happens, you will return here afterwards. Do you understand?"

The house elf's lips quivered and his bulbous eyes watered, but still he answered, "Yes, Master Regulus." In the low light, his face seemed even more twisted and gnarled than usual, a fact that might have amused Regulus under any circumstance where the expression didn’t reflect his own feelings rather more accurately than he could ever demonstrate himself. His aristocratic upbringing would hardly have allowed it, after all.

Regulus frowned, bending just enough to take Kreacher's hand, uneasily ignoring both the leathery texture and the elf’s instinctive recoil from the hand of a wizard. "It's going to be all right."

Kreacher's eyes glinted in the half shadow of the grim hallway, under the looming heads of his forebears, and he said nothing. It was not in the nature of a house elf to contradict his master.

The continuous echo of the rain outside was quiet, almost drowned out by the rush of blood pounding in his ears. Despite the roiling in his stomach, Regulus took a deep breath and straightened his spine, determined to be a proper son of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black to the end.

To whatever end.

 _Unlike Sirius,_ his treacherous mind supplied, and he faltered. Just a moment, but it was enough. He reached for the door handle, fingers hanging in the air over the gleaming silver, reflecting a pale, distorted hand reaching out for him in turn, inexorable, inescapable.

His hand dropped. "Kreacher, wait."

\---

Outside the cracked shutters, James could hear the wind roaring and the steady rhythmic thrum of the rain drumming on the cottage roof. He sighed, lost in thought as his hands stilled over the almost-forgotten cups of tea meant to help soothe the nightmares on the kitchen table, filled with so many nostalgic memories and only a select few, recent ones of pain and despair and anger. His hands always ached these days, and the heat helped, but he would never let Lily see. Never mind that he knew she could be strong enough for the both of them.

He and Lily were holed up in their new, old house in Godric's Hollow. James hadn't wanted to take his parents' beloved summer home, but his resolve had crumbled in the face of Lily storming into his flat while the Marauders were strewn about in various stages of hangover to announce that she was pregnant and it was all his damn fault, and then promptly bursting into tears.

His parents would have helped out anyway, he knew. They had always loved Lily, just like they loved Sirius, and they would have been thrilled to hear about their grandchild. Some days the ache in his chest grew greater than the one in his hands.

His heart thumped loudly, painfully, and with a shock he realized it wasn't just his heart but a low knock on the door, battering and insistent.

"Jamie?" Lily appeared on the stairs, face white, hand resting lightly on the banister while the other clutched the hem of her frayed shirt, pulling it taut over her still-flat belly. James nodded, pulling his wand from his back pocket and advancing cautiously on the door. He put his ear to the ancient wood and listened intently. He could hear a low murmur but couldn't make out voices or words. Shaking his head at Lily, he turned the knob and yanked the door open, wand pointing into the gap right into the face of--

"Kreacher?"

The wizened house elf could do little more than howl and clutch the sodden pile of cloth next to him. Cloth, James realized, that looked quite fine, despite the downpour, and rather bony, and familiar, and _oh god,_ "Sirius!?"

But as soon as the word escaped James’ throat, reason fought through the blind panic for a single moment of clarity. Sirius wouldn’t be caught dead anywhere near the house elf who had helped to make his childhood a living hell, and as much as the apparition on his doorstep hearkened back to the dark day Sirius ran away from his parents’ house, James happened to know that Sirius no longer owned any clothing nearly so high quality as the robes puddling on his stoop, as a point of pride and fascination with Muggle culture. Which meant…

“Regulus.” James raised his wand toward the body which had yet to move from its rather clearly injured position, and though he felt a twinge of pity for the pathetic sight, there was no way he would risk compromising his family’s safety for the sake of a marked Death Eater.

“James, wait.” Lily was at his side, her own wand out and pointed at Regulus. She cast silently, her eyes never leaving the wailing house elf practically draped over his prostrate master as shimmering silk cords bound the man, carefully avoiding the elf entirely, who seemed to take no notice other than wailing perceptibly louder.

“Lils, what—”

“Moody’s been after us to capture a live Death Eater for ages.” Lily’s brow furrowed as she levitated what might have passed for a heap of sodden cloth if not for the disturbing sight of the lolling head whose face looked so much like Sirius, only thin and hollow. “We can keep him here under guard until the Order can get here, and we’ll let Dumbledore decide what to do.”

James flinched. “Keep him here? All he has to do is press his arm and we’ll be surrounded faster than we can Apparate out,” he hissed, mindful of the moaning house elf now trailing after his floating master as the odd procession made its way to the kitchen where, to James’ horror, Lily dropped Regulus on the beloved hand-carved table.

As she began to pull Regulus’ robes away to feel his throat, Lily rolled her eyes at him. “He’s practically dead already, not to mention tied up. He’s…” She paused for a moment while she lowered an ear towards the unconscious man’s mouth and her eyes tracked Regulus’ chest for movement, then continued, “Barely got a pulse and his breath’s faint. If we leave him out there, or kill him… Does that make us any better than them?”

With a sinking sensation, James floundered, desperately searching for a reason to get them as far away from injured Death Eaters and devastated house elves as possible. “You really want Sirius to get anywhere near his brother?”

Cocking an eyebrow, Lily shot back, “You really want to tell Sirius that we killed his brother in cold blood?”

James dropped into the nearest chair, putting his head into his hands with a groan. “Merlin.”

“Quite.” Lily whispered a healing spell, and they both watched as some color returned to Regulus’ cheeks, though he didn’t stir. “Do you want to send the Patronus, or shall I?”

“I can handle it. Who knows what Minnie’s going to think of all this in the middle of the night,” James joked weakly. Flicking his wand and calling, “ _Expecto Patronum!"_ , James waited until the stag that burst forth had stopped preening for Lily, as it always did, and sent it cantering away into the storming night with the message, leaving him to wait with the love of his life, a defenseless enemy, and a weeping elf.

**Author's Note:**

> hi guys! this story is currently under construction, and any ideas or concrit would be adored! drop a comment or come see me on [tumblr!](https://podmore.tumblr.com/%20)


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